If you're strolling through downtown Anderson or one of the city's parks, odds are good that a surveillance camera is nearby.

The city now has 67 cameras operating, and more are coming.

"We are not wanting to be Big Brother," said one local official. The idea, he said, is safety.

Last fall, Anderson County officials put a surveillance camera at the Anderson Sports and Entertainment Complex.

Angie Stringer, a spokeswoman for the county, issued a media advisory a few weeks later describing how the camera had been "instrumental in breaking up a few 'private moments' ... which should be reserved for more private spaces."

"Anderson County encourages visitors to the Civic Center, surrounding walking trails and Kid Venture playground to be mindful that the area is monitored," Stringer said.

Anderson is not the only place in the Upstate where people can be caught on camera. Hundreds of surveillance cameras have been placed throughout the region in recent years at taxpayers' expense.

"There are a lot of cameras out there," said Anderson County emergency services director Taylor Jones.

There are cameras in Williamston's public parks. Eight cameras track traffic on Interstate 85 in Anderson County. Seven cameras watch what is happening in downtown Clemson.

Scores of schools also have installed cameras.

At Westside High School, Principal Henry Adair uses 125 cameras to keep tabs on students and others in the hallways, cafeteria and parking lot. "They have helped a lot," Adair said.

Government officials insist that video surveillance cameras do not infringe on personal privacy.

The city of Anderson's cameras "are not located where anyone would have an expectation of privacy," assistant city manager Linda McConnell said.

Anderson Mayor Terence Roberts said the city has signs to alert people they are in view of cameras.

"I don't have a problem with them in public places," Roberts said.

Most of the time no one monitors many of the region's cameras. "We don't have the people to sit there and watch them 24 hours a day," said Anderson County Sheriff John Skipper.

When Adair glances at the monitor on his desk, he occasionally sees Westside High students in the hallways when they should be in class. He uses the school's intercom to give them a stern warning.

"A lot of them will wave at me before they head off to where they are supposed to be," he said.

More often, Adair relies on footage from the cameras to respond to incidents that have already occurred.

"We can go back and see what happened," he said. "It usually involves a couple of students who were fussing or were at odds with each other."

Adair noted that the cameras have limitations.

"They are not like the cameras that you see on 'CSI' or other TV shows where they can zoom in," he said.

When the cameras were installed about five years ago, "we made a big deal telling the students to watch what you do and what you say," Adair said.

More are Coming

The city of Anderson intends to install video surveillance cameras in four additional parks and at Memorial Stadium as money becomes available, McConnell said. Each camera costs between $2,000 and $3,000.

"Video cameras enhance traditional policing" by serving as "supplemental 'boots on the ground,'" she said, and give citizens "an increased feeling of public safety."Four more cameras will be installed in the next few weeks at the Anderson Sports and Entertainment Complex, said Jones, the county's emergency service director.There are plans to place cameras at the Anderson Regional Airport and at the county's new $4 million Green Pond Landing boat ramp on Hartwell Lake.

Within the next 24 months, Jones hopes to create an integrated network that would enable emergency officials and dispatchers to quickly access the surveillance cameras in schools, parks and other public areas.

He said the goal is to enhance "situational awareness" for police, firefighters and other first responders.

Jones said such a network would be especially valuable if a gunman was inside a school. "You can look and see what the shooter is doing," which is critical to officers responding to the scene, Jones said.

Jones said police delayed entering Columbine High School in 1999 while trying to figure out what was happening inside.

With cameras, police could have formed a perimeter around the two armed students and "made rescues quicker," he said.

Having immediate access to surveillance cameras also can help authorities make rapid decisions about how to respond to everything from toxic chemical spills to small fires, Jones said.

If there's a grease fire in a school kitchen, Jones said, a live video stream could show there's no need for a ladder truck.

The county opened a new 911 dispatch center at Anderson Regional Airport last year and moved into new emergency operations headquarters on Bleckley Street. Now Jones said he's focused on getting access to surveillance cameras across the county.

"Right now we are still in the preliminary stages of getting this up and running," he said.

Store cameras and cellphones

Banks and many stores rely on surveillance cameras to prevent thefts and to keep customers safe.

"For a business, I think it is a good investment," said Anderson County Sheriff's Office spokesman Chad McBride. "It is imperative for businesses that have a constant flow of traffic."

Law enforcement agencies frequently use footage from surveillance cameras to investigate crimes. For instance, a sheriff's detective is using video from two local stores to track down three women who tried to buy merchandise with stolen credit cards.

Last month in North Myrtle Beach, a retired police officer was arrested after a camera outside a Wal-Mart captured footage of him assaulting a man and his wife in a dispute over a parking space.

"When you are caught on camera, there is really no arguing," McBride said.

The proliferation of cellphones equipped with cameras has led to a dramatic rise in videos that wind up on the TV news or websites such as YouTube.

A cellphone video prompted Skipper to fire a rookie deputy in October for kicking a man who had bitten another deputy's finger during an altercation outside a downtown bar.

McBride said most officers are aware they may be taped. A growing number of police cars are equipped with dashboard cameras, and police officers in Anderson wear body-mounted cameras.

"If we are doing what we are supposed to, we shouldn't have to be worried about whether or not we are being filmed," McBride said.

But McBride cautioned drivers to think twice before pointing cellphone cameras at officers during traffic stops.

"It might be the difference between getting a ticket or a warning," he said.